Mumbai: Contractor sent to police custody for two days

Representation Pic

Contractor Romin Chheda, arrested on Friday in connection with the Economic Offences Wing's (EOW) probe into alleged mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic, was on Saturday remanded to police custody for two days.

Chheda was arrested on Friday after several hours of questioning for allegedly causing losses amounting to R6 crore to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. He was subsequently produced before the Esplanade Court in south Mumbai, where the EOW sought his custody for further investigation.

The BMC had awarded Chheda a contract to set up oxygen plants at nine hospitals in the city during the pandemic. According to the EOW, the work was supposed to be completed within 30 days, failing which Chheda was to be fined one per cent of the contract amount for every week of delay.

While the civic body had exacted Rs 3.16 crore in fines from Chheda, the EOW allegedly discovered discrepancies in the dates of handover by Chheda and takeover by the BMC. Based on this, it is the EOW's contention that Chheda should have been fined Rs 6 crore.

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In the remand hearing, Chheda's lawyer argued that section 463 (forgery) of the Indian Penal Code was not applicable in this case, while all the other sections were bailable ones. The court, however, remanded Chheda to police custody till Monday, after examining documents submitted by the EOW.